Mahmood Ahmad
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8th Match: Australia v Pakistan at Nottingham, 19 Jun 2001 Mahmood Ahmad |
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Pakistan innings:
Australia innings: Pre-game: |
Waqar came back into the attack when Australia, riding on a magnificent 6th wicket partnership, seemed to be dictating terms, with the rest of the Pakistan attack looking completely helpless.
However, it all started with a maiden bowled by Razzaq, which seemed to have vexed an otherwise composed Steve.
Trying to get immediately back into scoring business, the Aussie skipper perhaps disregarded the fact he was up against a determined Waqar. He skied only the second ball of the over, high in the air and Saqlain, at mid off, took a well-judged catch. Waugh got a fine 56 (89 balls, 8 fours).
Symonds made the same fatal error in the same over and was taken at long on by Imran Nazir after juggling with the ball for quite some time. The all-rounder made 35 off 49 balls and hit 6 fours.
Waqar got his sixth scalp not before being hit for a huge six by Brett Lee (10 off 18 balls). The skipper retaliated with a perfect yorker, which sent Lee’s off stump cartwheeling, with the wicket falling at 208.
The 9th wicket to fall was that of Shane Warne – caught at mid off by Wasim after making a patient 14 off 25 balls.
The last wicket pair of Fleming and Gillespie, however, was not to give up easily. They lingered on for 33 balls, getting 31, before Razzaq came back and dislodged Gillespie’s off stump for 9 off 26. Fleming, having hit a huge six in only the previous over, remained unbeaten on 22 off the same number of balls.
For Pakistan Waqar yet again turned out to be the main success, getting 6 for 59 in 8 overs, while Saqlain got 2 for 41. The medium pacers – Razzaq and Azhar – finished with one wicket each for 24 and 56, respectively.
Starting off a bit shakily, obviously getting over the shock of the wickets, Symonds hit a number of improvised boundaries to both sides of the wicket, keeping the scoring well over 7 an over by the 20th over.
Meanwhile, Waugh was as cool as ever, getting the scoreboard ticking over by exploiting the gaps to find quick one’s and two’s while also getting boundaries, it seemed, at will.
It was such an exquisite cover drive off Azhar that brought up the 150 of the innings in 22nd over. The introduction of another medium pacer, Abdur Razzaq, with his controlled deliveries, put the much wanted breaks on the scoring rate.
With floodlights taking their effect and wind getting gradually saturated with moisture, the medium pacers discovered some reverse swing in the wicket.
However, the Australians got moving, with the 50 of the partnership coming up in the 25th over of the innings (off 63 balls), as Waugh steered the ball down to third man. Incidentally, that single also brought up the fifty for the skipper off 63 balls. This 44th half-century by Waugh contained 8 boundaries.
Austalia, having reached 189 for 5 after 30 overs, need a gettable 102 in 20 overs. With Waugh going great guns at 56 (82 balls) and Symonds excellently supporting him with 34 (45 balls) against his name, we surely have a close game on our hands.
Continuing with his dream-run of 7 wickets at Headingley, Waqar snapped up the wickets of Mark Waugh and Matthew Hayden in his very first over – both brilliantly taken behind the wicket by Rashid Latif without disturbing the scorer.
Thereafter, it was Gilchrist everywhere, as he took four boundaries in Waqar’s second over. With Wasim Akram also conceding runs, the score hopped to 35 by the 5th over.
Waqar then swung back the momentum by getting his third scalp, and what a wicket it was! Michael Bevan had already hit one boundary, a fine cover drive off Waqar, when the skipper shook his stumps by a sharp in-cutter.
The next over, 7th of the innings, saw Gilchrist getting 20, including four boundaries off Wasim to bring up the fifty of the innings in 44 balls. Waqar came on for his 4th over, 8th overall, and was hit for three fours, as the left-hander brought up his fifty off just 29 deliveries, which included 11 fours.
The introduction of Saqlain’s spin didn’t seem to deter the belligerent Gilchrist as he continued to club the ball around, and surviving some close moments in the process.
After bringing up the fifty for the 4th wicket, in association with his skipper, off just 33 balls, he slammed a six off Saqlain to post the hundred of the innings in just the 12th over.
The Aussie vice-captain had moved on to 70 off 44 balls, studded with 12 fours and a six, and was looking really ominous at this stage, when trying a shot once to often, he was bowled by the off spinner.
Saqlain struck again four balls later, having Damien Martyn caught at first slip for 2 off 4 balls, the wicket falling at 113 and the balance tilting once again in Pakistan’s favour.
The Aussie’s have reached 114 for 5 at the 15-over stage, with Steve Waugh holding on to the innings with a watchful 23 (31 balls, 4 fours). He has the all-rounder Symonds at the other end, who has yet to get off the mark after facing 4 balls.
Pakistan had reached 250 for 6 after 45 overs, when one of the many firecrackers being used freely by a section of the crowd, found its way into the ground, prompting the Aussie captain to lead his players off the field, with the Pakistani batsmen – Rashid and Azhar – following reluctantly.
The play was held for about 15 minutes and the two batsmen seemed to be struggling to find their rythym afterwards. Azhar stayed at the crease for only 8 more balls, the score having reached 257, when Gilchrist stumped him off Symonds. He made 15 off 9 balls. Rashid had scored 26 off 25, when going for quick single, he was run out after Aussie skipper hit the stumps directly from mid wicket.
Wasim, returning to the team after playing the first match, hit 2 sixes and 1 four on his way to an unbeaten 28 off 15 balls, thus reviving the Pakistan innings.
Waqar scored 3 from 4 balls, before being bowled by Symonds. Saqlain faced one ball to score 1.
Earlier, it was fine 93-run partnership off 101 balls between Youhana and Elahi that really set the pace for a big score. Youhana had scored 44 off 56 and was beginning to look really dangerous, when the Aussie trump, Shane Warne, had him stumped down the leg side.
Elahi then took the score to 190 by the 36th over, along with Younis Khan, when Warne struck for the second time. The leggie produced a perfect flipper, taking Elahi right in front of the wicket. The Pakistani opener got a useful 79 off 92 balls, of which 8 were dispatched to the fence.
The 38th over, by Warne, saw Younis driving the ball to mid wicket fence for his first four. A single two balls later brought up the 200 of the innings.
Most of the frontline bowlers having bowled out, Waugh brought on Damien Martyn for the 40th over and the part-timer did wonders by seizing the wicket of Younis Khan (23 off 28, 2 four). It was a full toss, and the batsmen just looped it up for an easy catch at mid on.
For Australia, Brett Lee, Symonds and Warne got three wickets each for 41, 45 and 60, respectively. Martyn bagged one wicket for 45 in five overs.
Despite trying five of his frontline bowlers in multiple spells, the Aussie skipper has not succeeded so far in breaking this partnership, which is looking potentially dangerous at the moment.
The marked disappointment of the world champions has been Shane Warne. After starting off with a maiden, he conceded 16 in the next two, as Elahi clubbed him around for a couple of boundaries.
It was the leggie's third over, the 20th in all, when the right-handed opener took eight runs off the over, including a vicious cut to deep point boundary, to bring up the hundred of the innings. And that was all from the leg spinner for the time being.
Elahi got to his fifty, his fifth in ODIs, in the 24th over off Fleming, off 67 balls, which contained 7 fours, six of which he hit on the off side.
Youhana, on the other end, was his usual composed self, working the ball in the gaps and finding runs, making the most of some lapses in the fielding
Warne returned for the 30th over, and a boundary by Youhana, his 4th in 37, brought up the 150 of the innings. The scorecard at the end of the over showed 153 for 2, with Elahi batting confidently on 62 off 79 balls.
Out of match practice for some time, Fleming bowled a couple of wides in his opening over, followed by another loose one down the leg, which was flicked by Saeed to fine leg boundary.
Gillespie, playing his first match against Pakistan, too, started off with a couple of wayward deliveries, and expressed his dissent when umpire Milander’s signalled them wides. However, the lanky seamer retaliated strongly, producing a flurry of leg-cutters that just missed the outside edge in a number of occasions.
Fleming soon got out of the groove, delivering some fine balls – one of which took the edge of Saleem’s bat and went straight to second gully, but unluckily it was a no ball.
Regaining his composure, the batsman got his second boundary – the first being a thick edge to 3rd man – pushing Gillespie down to the vacant mid off region.
Saeed, in the meantime, executed some exquisite cuts and drives, mainly on the off, to bring up the fifty of the innings in the 12th over. The elegant left-hander had moved on to 34 (43 balls, 6 fours), when he was adjudged plumb lbw, trying to turn Lee away to leg.
Razzaq got off the mark in style, driving the first ball to the cover boundary. He got just one more after that. Going for a similar shot in Lee’s next over, he managed only to hole out to Fleming at mid off, Pakistan suddenly down to 71 for 2 in the 15th over.
Youhana also got of the mark with a leg side boundary, taking the score to 75 by the end of that over. Saleem Elahi has 21 off 36 balls against his name, having hit 4 fours.
Pakistan have made three changes to the side that beat England at Headingley two days ago. Wasim Akram has come back after recovering from his shoulder injury. Faisal Iqbal gets his first chance in the series, whereas Saleem Elahi will have a second go after playing against England at Lord's.
Inzamam, injuring his hand while fielding at first slip at Headingley, is out of the playing XI, so are Afridi and Fazl-e-Akbar.
Australia have also made three changes in their side, bringing in Damien Fleming in place of McGrath. Brett Lee and Mark Waugh are back, after missing out at Old Trafford, while all-rounder Ian Harvey and Ricky Ponting go out.
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Date-stamped : 20 Jun2001 - 06:25